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In the bustling world of legal practice, innovation is often associated with case strategies, courtroom tactics, or legal research tools. However, sometimes it's the behind-the-scenes processes that can make the biggest difference in a lawyer's ability to thrive and provide exceptional service to clients. Taylor M. Tieman, Esq., a Los Angeles-based attorney with a passion for communication and business law, found that partnering with Bench, a comprehensive bookkeeping platform, allowed her to focus on her strengths and build a thriving law firm.
Taylor's journey to becoming a successful attorney began in college, where she graduated as a communications major. Afterward, she decided to pursue law school.
“I knew I wanted to do something where I’d be financially secure,” Taylor said. “My mom always stressed how important that was, and it was important to me too, to be able to provide for myself.”
Her passion for communication remained, however, and she was drawn to the world of media and business law.
How Taylor’s growing law firm led her to Bench
After gaining experience in civil litigation law firms for several years, Taylor realized her true calling was in helping small and new business owners—particularly those in the Latinx, femme, and BIPOC communities—navigate the legal complexities of entrepreneurship. In 2019, she took a bold step and opened her own law firm to do just that, developing alongside it a budget-friendly, membership-based legal platform called LegalMiga.
“We try to be super approachable, and we offer lots of educational resources, like workshops,” Taylor said. “We know that there’s a lot to decide when you’re investing in your business, and legal isn’t always the first thing you want to invest in.”
The venture was a success from the start—but as her client base grew, so did the challenges of managing the financial side of the evolving practice.
One of the challenges Taylor faced was the daunting task of regular bookkeeping and juggling the business' finances. Like many entrepreneurs, she found herself spending too much time attempting to categorize expenses, create profit and loss statements, and manage the financial intricacies of her law firm.
“I tried [doing my numbers and filing taxes] myself, and then I continued to try, and I just was like, I'm spending way too much time being miserable doing this,” Taylor says.
She recognized that she needed a solution that would allow her to focus on her strengths and leave the financial intricacies to professionals. “Luckily, we found Bench,” she says.
“I tried [doing my numbers and filing taxes] myself, and then I continued to try, and I just was like, I'm spending way too much time being miserable doing this."
Bench’s user-friendly bookkeeping and accounting platform is specifically designed to help small business owners streamline their financial processes. Taylor was introduced to Bench through a friend in the legal community who’d had positive experiences with the platform's efficiency and ease of use. Taylor decided to give Bench a try, and the results were transformative.
Using Bench meant her previous struggles with manual data entry and categorization were over. Taylor was particularly impressed with the platform's ability to provide categorized profit and loss statements and other financial documents she had previously struggled to create on her own.
“I would just hand over my documentation and I knew it was handled. That was such a relief,” Tieman said.
The Bench benefit, in Taylor's words:
- Time savings: The most significant benefit Taylor experienced was the substantial time savings. With Bench handling her bookkeeping and financial management, she could redirect her efforts towards growing her firm, strategizing for her clients, and engaging in the communication and legal work she loved.
- Financial clarity: Bench's user-friendly dashboard provided Taylor with a clear overview of her firm's financial health. From profit and loss statements to categorized expenses, she could easily access the information she needed to make informed decisions and plan for the future.
- Strategic planning: With Bench's assistance, Taylor gained insights into her firm's financial trends and patterns. This enabled her to make informed decisions about the growth and direction of her business, and to plan for potential challenges.
- Educational resources: Bench provided Taylor with educational resources that helped her better understand financial concepts relevant to her practice. This empowered her to take a more active role in her firm's financial management.
